Except for The Apothecary Diaries, all Spring 2025 series which aren’t continuing into the summer season are complete at this point, so it’s time to do an update on what was and wasn’t working over the course of the second half of the season.
Because of the high volume of titles I followed, covering every one of them here would make this post cumbersome. Hence I am only covering those titles for which I have updated my grade since the Mid-Season Reports and/or have additional commentary to offer. The Apothecary Diaries (still my #1 title for the season) is not being covered here, since it is getting episode reviews.
Other Spring Mid-Season Report part 1 titles which are not getting further coverage here include From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman, I’ve Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level, The Beginning After The End, The Brilliant Healer’s New Life in the Shadows, and The Unaware Atelier Meister. Please refer to the previous article for evaluations on them.
Other Spring Mid-Season Report part 2 titles which are not getting further coverage here include Makina-san is a Love Bot!?, SHIROHIYO (which I didn’t finish), and Summer Pockets (which is continuing, and so could be reviewed again next season). Please refer to the previous article for evaluations on them.
Featured Title: Apocalypse Hotel
Rating: A-
This is my strong #2 pick for the season, and it’s a lot closer to catching The Apothecary Diaries than I could have anticipated, despite the great, vastly more involved storylines that the latter is telling. That’s primarily because Hotel continues to deliver involving concept episodes, such as one which combines a wedding and a funeral into the same ceremony in a way that not only makes sense but also comes off as surprisingly endearing. Even episodes that seem ordinary in concept, like Yachiyo being forced to take a day off for the first time in centuries, pack a great deal of charm, and the seeming randomness of its episodic themes makes this one of the least predictable series in recent memory. At the core of it all is Yachiyo, who becomes a legitimate Character of the Year candidate for the way all her little idiosyncrasies play out and the way she does (or doesn’t) handle crises, although Ponko also becomes an indispensable second as she ages into adulthood. Technical merits also continue to be a strong point throughout, and the opener will be on my short list when it comes to determining the year’s best. Solidifying its position is an especially strong finale. This one is almost certain to be in my Top 10 for the year.
Bye Bye, Earth s2
Rating: B-
The last two episodes finally explain what’s really going on here and the strange logic behind how and why this setting works the way it does – and, most importantly, how Belle fits into this. That doesn’t totally allay the series’ issues with comprehensibility; this is still a title whose ambitions exceed its capacity to portray them all in coherent fashion, and why Belle was put into the situation that she was is not part of the explanation. Still, the last episodes bring a sense of completeness to this story, of a transition made from Belle (and others) trying to figure out their place to Belle going on a journey confident in her identity, and that is sufficiently satisfying. Not sure that I’d recommend the series, but I don’t feel like I ultimately wasted my time with it.
Go! Go! Loser Ranger s2
Rating: B-
The rating is only this high on the strength of this season’s first half because the second half is a mess. The Monster Society plot becomes increasingly difficult to follow, and some of the revelations (especially the ones about the Dragon Priestesses) just don’t make much sense. So do the constantly-shifting allegiances and what, exactly, Angel is supposed to be, and are there now two different Red Keepers? Why the trap at the end works the way it does is ill-explained as well. There is an interesting character development at the very end, but by that point I’d stopped caring.
I Left My A-Rank Party
Rating: B
Though still not overtly a harem title, its shades much more in that direction as the last quarter of the series progresses, including the ladies in Clover having no qualms with being considered Yuke’s wives as part of a visit to a country where women are allowed less independence (though it hardly seems like Prince Mamar’s wife is subservient to him. . .) and being a bit more flirtatious when it comes to bath scenes. Also, Jamie’s adventuring get-up seems a bit too tailored to sex appeal. The story progresses fine overall, though, including some nice dramatic build-up going into the final episode. Most importantly, even as Yuke becomes “the hero,” the series never forgets that Clover is a team effort rather than an OP individual and his groupies, and that sentiment stays true through to the end.
I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire!
Rating: B-
One thing that has been consistently confusing with this series is the timeline in the intergalactic setting, but that is finally clarified with the last episode, when Liam’s age makes it clear that 50 years have passed in the new setting despite him still looking like a teenager; apparently everyone is space elves without the ears, or else science has slowed down aging. That much better explains some earlier references (such as Christiana’s assertion that she had suffered for “decades”) and how the Banfield territory had progressed so much so apparently fast. Christiana joining the big fight against the pirates also finally rounds out the action back to the series’ starting point. The whole thing is still a quite flippant treatment of both isekai stories and space operas, and is best enjoyed on that front rather than worrying about any of the practical details, though Liam’s loyalty to Amagi in all of this is a little touching. Not a great series, but not a waste of time in the end, either.
Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuux
Rating: B
Still think this one will play much better to someone intimately familiar with the original Mobile Suit Gundam, especially given some revelations in the final episode, but it plays pretty well as a space-based mecha extravaganza, complete with robustly-animated space battles and some interesting visual gimmickry at times. It also delves deeply into alternate world theory; this is a literal “what if” scenario, as it turns out, but it’s also not that simple. On the downside, the series is so dedicated to showing off the Big Picture that the two female leads get shoved into reserve roles for close to half of the series. As a result, they are not satisfyingly developed at the end; this is nowhere near on the same level as Witch From Mercury in that regard.
Our Last Crusade s2
Rating: C+
This one still has major flaws, especially with action scenes sometimes more ambitious than its animation effort can keep up with. However, the series is hardly bottom-of-the-barrel in that regard, and the multilayered scheming among the royal families in the Sovereignty is developing surprisingly well. There are also some interesting developments involving Salinger the Demon and the Empire’s Emperor. Most importantly, Alice seems to have matured a bit, especially after getting a flashy rematch with Iska out of her system. While the episode doesn’t quite end on a cliffhanger, it definitely ends in the middle of a major plotline, so here’s hoping that another season will be coming more quickly than this one did.
Rock is a Lady’s Modesty
Rating: B++
This one stands even with Sword of the Demon Hunter and behind only The Apothecary Diaries and Apocalypse Hotel as one of the season’s best, as the more rock-focused shift and the completion of the series’ core quartet turn this into a sizzling affair about how rock music can infuse deep into the soul for those who perform it. The series is at its best when featuring the passion, energy, and fierce determination of Lilisa in particular and how that can draw in and motivate those around her. Of course, part of the fun is still the harsh, sometimes obscene language and gestures Lilisa an Otoha use to convey their passion. The relationship-building between Otoha and Lilisa is also a plus, as is expanding on the way Lilisa’s stepsister gets drawn in by seeing Lilisa be “real.” The animation of the performance numbers, complete with all of the great facial expressions, continues to be a treat, as does the way Otoha infuses sexiness into all of this without the series explicitly resorting to fan service. This had been a fun ride, and I’ll definitely be back if another season is animated.
Sword of the Demon Hunter
Rating: B+
While this one still has some quality execution, I’m lowering my grade on it a notch because of some baffling organizational choices that the series makes. After teasing that the story would advance to 2009 at the end of episode 1, the series finally carries through on that at the end of episode 9 in a neat scene which shows that promises have been kept over the decades even if those in modern times don’t know their meaning. After using a play to reflect on 1850s events, though, the story returns to the 1850s. . . and stays there through the end of the season. Beyond the aforementioned neat scene, what was the point of going forward in time at this point, then? It would have made total sense if the story were alternating between past and present, but we’re not seeing that so far.
Despite that, the series still shines with its quality character development, plotting in its 1850s elements, historical detail, and rigorous use of symbolism, especially in its use of flowers. It also consistently looks great, too. This is one of the season’s most underappreciated series.
Teogonia
Rating: B
This one never got much attention, which is a shame, because it turned out to be a pretty decent shonen-style series. Its strength is in its cultural and world-building sense, though it does also have some interesting battle scenarios and a fair amount of tension as well. I do hope this one gets a continuation, as I’m curious to see where the story goes next.
The Mononoke Lecture Logs of Chuzenji-sensei
Rating: B
I know I’m repeating myself here, but that this series never got picked up for legal streaming is the biggest injustice of the Spring ’25 season. It doesn’t change its format in the second half, with most episodes still focused around a central mystery that usually seems to have supernatural elements to it, but some episodes (especially #11) also incorporate more social aspects which involve numerous recurring cast members, including Chuzenji’s wife and kid sister. Certainly not heavy fare, but as a light mystery series it holds it own if you can find a reliable way to watch it.
The Too-Perfect Saint
Rating: B
Serious animation limitations are forcing me to lower the grade on this one a notch, but the series still delivers on other fronts. Maya’s grand revenge mission (which doubles as a mission to salvage what little hope her kingdom has of surviving how badly the second princes has made a mess of things) keeps things lively and more than makes up for how subdued Philia’s personality is, and watching the latter realize that she may be in love with Oswald is a treat. On any front other than technical merits, it’s still one of the better series of its type.
The Gorilla God’s Go-To Girl
Rating: B
Again, the animation quality really limits how good this one can be, as the more frequent action scenes in the late episodes can hardly be called robust and still shots dominate all too often. However, the series never loses its charm, even as the plot involving the terrorists and their Panther God-blessed leader gets heavier. That the terrorist leader isn’t necessarily wrong – he is firmly convinced that people shouldn’t be beholden to their animal god blessings – is an interesting twist, and he would be a legitimately sympathetic character if he wasn’t being hypocritical about it and aggressive in an off-putting way. The series does explore this aspect a bit, showing even seemingly-lowly animal blessings can still be useful in the right situations, how some can be more than their blessings (see Louis), and how the best way to use a blessing is open to interpretation, even for a seemingly combat-oriented one like Gorilla God. There’s a lot of interesting potential here, but the late episodes rush through it too much. Even so, seeing Sophia stand on her own at the end, making her own decision about the future and still getting the guy, is quite satisfying.
Witch Watch
Rating: B
When this series keeps things light, it’s one of the funniest anime around, so an arc which turned serious and at least a bit heavy was an uncomfortable choice. (And yes, I’m fully aware that anime comedies have a loooong history of doing this.) On the plus side, that arc does formally bring a werewolf into the regular cast and seems to be elevating cat-transforming witch Nemu to a regular rather than fringe cast member. Both of these are positive long-term developments. This series is continuing into its second cour, so more fun is coming.
Yandere Dark Elf
Rating: C
The second half of this series doesn’t really do anything beyond what the first half does or change its MO at all, so I wasn’t originally intending to include this one. However, the series deserves some acknowledgement for properly wrapping up its romantic entanglements and doing so without the expected harem ending; the other two women from Hinata’s former party never show any significant romantic interest in him (though they certainly integrally play into the fan service scenarios), Hinata’s classmate eventually concedes to Mariabell on the romantic front, and Hinata even eventually reciprocates Mariabell’s feelings. There’s even an implication in the final shot that Mariabell finally gets to have sex with Hinata, too. Not a great romcom or fan service series by any stretch, and the censoring is still as irritating as ever, but at least it ends better than most of its ilk.
That’s it for this season! Look for the Summer 2025 Preview Guide to start shortly.
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